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In Appreciation of FSTC

Emeritus Professor Durward J Cruickshank, Fellow of Royal Society and world renowned distinguished scientist has presented FSTC with a valuable gift in its work in the History of Science.

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19 July 2006

Emeritus Professor Durward J Cruickshank, Fellow of Royal Society and world renowned Scientist, has presented the George Sarton collection on the History of Science to the Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation (FSTC).

Born in 1924, Professor Cruikshank enjoyed a distinguished career in the field of x-ray crystallography between 1946 and 1999 for which he received many awards. His work at Leeds from 1950-1962 under Professor E. G. Cox pioneered the use of computers in crystallography which he continued at Glasgow University from 1962 to 1967 and UMIST from 1967 to 1999.

Cruickshank published on refinement methods and the accuracy of structure analysis by Fourier and least-square methods from 1948 onwards. He also worked on anisotropic molecular vibrations, results and interpretations for aromatic hydrocarbons and tetrahedral oxyanions. His final position as Honorary Professorial Research fellow allowed him to work on the Laue method in time-resolved macromolecular crystallography and on the precision of protein structure analysis.

The photographs were taken by their mutual friend and eminent scientist Dr Michael Hartley. All three were senior academics at the University of Manchester Institute for Science and Technology (UMIST). They reminisced about the days of Lord Vivian Bowden, the Principal of UMIST who, just before his death, became extremely interested in Muslim Heritage in science, technology and trade. He started the process of establishing an Institute of Muslim Science and Commerce to be managed jointly by UMIST and the Victoria University of Manchester. He and Professor Donald Cardwell, Founder of Department of History of Science and Technology at UMIST and Founder of the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester, were the unknown true forefathers of FSTC.

The Sarton Collection

- Introduction to the History of Science by George Sarton
Volume I: From Homer to Omar Khayyam. Williams and Wilkins, 1927
Volume II (2 parts) From Rabbi ben Ezra to Roger Bacon Williams and Wilkins, 1931
Volume III (2 parts) Science and learning in the 14th century. Williams and Wilkins, 1947

- A history of Science. Ancient science through the golden age of Greece. Oxford University Press 1953

- A history of science. Hellenistic science and culture in the last three centuries B.C. Science Editions for John Wiley 1965